Genesee County Courthouse
Encyclopedia
The Genesee County Courthouse is located at the intersection of Main (New York state routes 5
and 33
) and Ellicott (NY 63
) streets in Batavia
, New York, United States. It is a three-story Greek Revival
limestone
structure built in the 1840s.
It replaced an older timber frame courthouse near the current site, which served what was at that time the entire Holland Purchase
, the vast tract that is today Western New York
. At the time the courthouse was built, the county
had been reduced to its current size by the creation of 10 other counties from the purchase. Construction materials were all sourced locally.
Later it underwent some minor renovations. While Genesee County has subsequently built additional court facilities nearby where most judicial activity takes place, it is still used for some court purposes as well as offices for the county manager, attorney
and the meeting place of the county legislature. In 1973 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
. Nine years later, in 1982, when the Genesee County Courthouse Historic District
was added to the Register, the courthouse was again included as a contributing property
.
brick structure also used by the county. Walkways connect the two, and surrounding sidewalks, amid a large lawn. West of the courthouse, at the fork of Main and Ellicott, is the large granite Soldier's Monument, with a statue of General Emory Upton
.
Other public buildings dominate the neighboring streets. The post office, old county jail and Batavia's old city hall, all also contributing properties to the historic district, are to the north, across Main. On the northwest is city police headquarters. Northeast is the new city hall and Genesee Country Mall. Other public buildings are on the south, with Tonawanda Creek
behind them. All these buildings are surrounded by parking lots.
Two blocks west along West Main is the Holland Land Office
Museum, a National Historic Landmark
. The commercial areas of downtown Batavia begin two blocks east along both streets. To the north, south and west are residential areas.
The building itself is a five-by-five-bay
structure with load-bearing limestone
walls. On the east (front) side it is two and a half stories high, reaching a full three on the west. The lower level is set off by a belt course
that also serves as a water table
. Atop the building is a hipped roof
with slate shingles trimmed in copper at the roofline. A cupola
with bell from the original courthouse is in the center, and a brick chimney rises from the southeast corner.
Across the first floor of the east facade
are six large stone pilaster
s with Doric
capitals
. All the bays save for the centrally located main entrance have 12-over-12 double-hung sash window
s. At the roofline is an architrave
of three narrow bands topped by a plain wide frieze
below the projecting cornice
.
The lower tier of the cupola has clapboard
siding with corner pilasters and a frieze and projecting molded
cornice of its own. Atop that is a balustrade surrounding the top tier, where each face has two Doric pilasters flanking a louver
ed vent. Above its frieze and cornice is a copper dome.
Stone steps with center and side iron guardrails rise to the deeply recessed main entrance. The front door is framed by more Doric pilasters, sidelights and a transom
above its own cornice. It opens into a central hallway with offices on either side.
At the far end is a double stair that merges into one before it reaches the second floor. The main courtroom, with coved ceiling
covered in acoustical tiles, is on that level along with two judges' chambers. Wainscoting and door and window trim are apparently original. The third floor has been converted from the county clerk's offices to an open meeting room for the county legislature.
supervised the building of the first courthouse in 1802 on behalf of the Holland Land Company
, for which he was agent. It was a two-story frame structure located to the east of the present building, near the site of the county building on the opposite side of the triangle. He had chosen what became Batavia for his headquarters due to its location at the convergence of major Iroquois
trails through the region, two of which became Main and Ellicott streets and the state highways that follow them.
The original building had jail facilities in the basement, offices on the first floor and its courtroom upstairs. Like its successor, it was topped with a cupola
. Local lore holds that David McCracken, a prosperous early resident with a reputation for playing practical joke
s, was surprised that the land company had not bought a bell to go with it, and commissioned a bell on his own from a foundry in New Haven, Connecticut
. After taking delivery, he hung it from a pole between two trees and proceeded to ring it in the early hours of one morning, awakening the entire village. Ellicott asked if the bell was for sale, and when McCracken said yes, the land agent bought it from him at that very moment. It has hung in the courthouse ever since.
As the Holland Purchase was settled more extensively, Genesee County, which had originally been coterminous with the lands, was subdivided into the other ten counties in the region. As the county's boundaries changed, this created pressure to relocate the county seat
somewhere more central to the remaining county. This ended with the creation of the last county, Wyoming
, to Genesee's immediate south, in 1841, leaving Batavia once again centrally located within the county.
The county's Board of Supervisors had petitioned the state legislature for money to build a new courthouse, which was authorized that same year. Its Greek Revival
design, typical for public buildings of the period, was an expanded version of the original courthouse, later to serve as town and village hall. The Onondaga limestone was quarried locally. The wall stones came from nearby Le Roy
, already emerging as a center for that material, and the pillars and capitals
from Lockport
, the seat of Niagara County
to the northwest.
Local craftsmen worked on the construction. The building was finished early in 1843 and the first court sessions were held later that year. At first the Board of Supervisors allowed all sorts of public meetings to be held in the building, but by 1851 they had ordered the sheriff
to allow only county meetings. The two building commissioners who had overseen construction later served as judges, one not leaving the bench until the early 20th century.
The first renovations were made in 1862, when some aspects of the interior were altered and fireproofing
was added to benefit the county clerk. In 1918 the original courthouse, since renamed Ellicott Hall, burned down. The bell was saved and moved to the cupola in the current courthouse.
Major renovations took place in 1932. The front, originally a recessed full-width porch with freestanding columns, was enclosed to create more office space. The columns became pilasters. Inside, the upstairs courtroom was reconfigured into a north-south access and the bench was moved accordingly. These renovations cost $58,000 ($ in contemporary dollars).
In 1957 the exterior walls were sandblasted. A more extensive 1975 project spent $155,000 ($ in contemporary dollars) to add a fire alarm and sprinkler system, lightning protection, gutter downspout
s and cleaned the outside stone again. The windows and roofing were replaced, along with the wooden trim. The wooden supports for the bell were replaced, and its rope gave way to an electrical system. Air conditioning and an elevator were added in 1999.
There have been no other substantial changes to the building. Currently it serves as offices for the county manager
and his or her assistant, as well as the county attorney
. The nine-member county legislature still meets twice a month in the upstairs courtroom.
New York State Route 5
New York State Route 5 is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Syracuse, Utica, Schenectady, and several other smaller cities and...
and 33
New York State Route 33
New York State Route 33 is an east–west state highway in western New York in the United States. The route extends for just under from NY 5 in Buffalo in the west to NY 31 in Rochester in the east. It is, in fact, the only state highway that directly connects both cities, although...
) and Ellicott (NY 63
New York State Route 63
New York State Route 63 is a state highway in the western part of New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 15 and NY 21 in the village of Wayland in Steuben County. Its northern end is at a junction with NY 18 in the town...
) streets in Batavia
Batavia (city), New York
Batavia is a city in Genesee County, Western New York, USA, located near the middle of Genesee County, entirely within the Town of Batavia. Its population as of the 2000 census was 16,256...
, New York, United States. It is a three-story Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
structure built in the 1840s.
It replaced an older timber frame courthouse near the current site, which served what was at that time the entire Holland Purchase
Holland Purchase
The Holland Purchase was a large tract of land in what is now the western portion of the U.S. state of New York. It consisted of about 3,250,000 acres of land from a line approximately 12 miles to the west of the Genesee River to the present western border and boundary of New York State.The land...
, the vast tract that is today Western New York
Western New York
Western New York is the westernmost region of the state of New York. It includes the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Niagara Falls, the surrounding suburbs, as well as the outlying rural areas of the Great Lakes lowlands, the Genesee Valley, and the Southern Tier. Some historians, scholars and others...
. At the time the courthouse was built, the county
Genesee County, New York
Genesee County is a county located in Western New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 60,079. Its name is from the Seneca Indian word Gen-nis'-hee-yo meaning "The Beautiful Valley." Its county seat is Batavia.- History :...
had been reduced to its current size by the creation of 10 other counties from the purchase. Construction materials were all sourced locally.
Later it underwent some minor renovations. While Genesee County has subsequently built additional court facilities nearby where most judicial activity takes place, it is still used for some court purposes as well as offices for the county manager, attorney
County attorney
A county attorney in many areas of the United States is the chief legal officer for a county or local judicial district. It is usually an elected position...
and the meeting place of the county legislature. In 1973 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. Nine years later, in 1982, when the Genesee County Courthouse Historic District
Genesee County Courthouse Historic District
The Genesee County Courthouse Historic District is located at the junction of Main, West Main and Ellicott streets in downtown Batavia, New York, United States. It is a small area with the county courthouse, a war memorial and other government buildings dating from the 1840s to the 1920s...
was added to the Register, the courthouse was again included as a contributing property
Contributing property
In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing resource or contributing property is any building, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic district, listed locally or federally, significant...
.
Building
The courthouse is located in the west corner of the triangular lot with Main on the north, Ellicott on the south and Court Street to the east. It is prominently visible to traffic approaching down West Main Street from the west. The block contains one other building, a large Colonial RevivalColonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
brick structure also used by the county. Walkways connect the two, and surrounding sidewalks, amid a large lawn. West of the courthouse, at the fork of Main and Ellicott, is the large granite Soldier's Monument, with a statue of General Emory Upton
Emory Upton
Emory Upton was a United States Army General and military strategist, prominent for his role in leading infantry to attack entrenched positions successfully at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House during the American Civil War, but he also excelled at artillery and cavalry assignments...
.
Other public buildings dominate the neighboring streets. The post office, old county jail and Batavia's old city hall, all also contributing properties to the historic district, are to the north, across Main. On the northwest is city police headquarters. Northeast is the new city hall and Genesee Country Mall. Other public buildings are on the south, with Tonawanda Creek
Tonawanda Creek
Tonawanda Creek is a small river in Western New York, in the United States. William Bright says the best that can be said of the name is that it is "probably from an Iroquoian source, but of unclear derivation".-Description:...
behind them. All these buildings are surrounded by parking lots.
Two blocks west along West Main is the Holland Land Office
Holland Land Office
The Holland Land Office building is located on West Main Street in downtown Batavia, New York, United States. It is a stone building designed by surveyor Joseph Ellicott and erected in the 1810s....
Museum, a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
. The commercial areas of downtown Batavia begin two blocks east along both streets. To the north, south and west are residential areas.
The building itself is a five-by-five-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
structure with load-bearing limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
walls. On the east (front) side it is two and a half stories high, reaching a full three on the west. The lower level is set off by a belt course
Course (architecture)
A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
that also serves as a water table
Water table
The water table is the level at which the submarine pressure is far from atmospheric pressure. It may be conveniently visualized as the 'surface' of the subsurface materials that are saturated with groundwater in a given vicinity. However, saturated conditions may extend above the water table as...
. Atop the building is a hipped roof
Hip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
with slate shingles trimmed in copper at the roofline. A cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
with bell from the original courthouse is in the center, and a brick chimney rises from the southeast corner.
Across the first floor of the east facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
are six large stone pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s with Doric
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
. All the bays save for the centrally located main entrance have 12-over-12 double-hung sash window
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
s. At the roofline is an architrave
Architrave
An architrave is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of the columns. It is an architectural element in Classical architecture.-Classical architecture:...
of three narrow bands topped by a plain wide frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
below the projecting cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
.
The lower tier of the cupola has clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
siding with corner pilasters and a frieze and projecting molded
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
cornice of its own. Atop that is a balustrade surrounding the top tier, where each face has two Doric pilasters flanking a louver
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
ed vent. Above its frieze and cornice is a copper dome.
Stone steps with center and side iron guardrails rise to the deeply recessed main entrance. The front door is framed by more Doric pilasters, sidelights and a transom
Transom (architectural)
In architecture, a transom is the term given to a transverse beam or bar in a frame, or to the crosspiece separating a door or the like from a window or fanlight above it. Transom is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over this crosspiece...
above its own cornice. It opens into a central hallway with offices on either side.
At the far end is a double stair that merges into one before it reaches the second floor. The main courtroom, with coved ceiling
Coved ceiling
A coved ceiling is a ceiling that has had the visual appearance of the point where the ceiling meets the walls improved by the addition of coving.It can also refer to an arched-dome ceiling, like in a mosque....
covered in acoustical tiles, is on that level along with two judges' chambers. Wainscoting and door and window trim are apparently original. The third floor has been converted from the county clerk's offices to an open meeting room for the county legislature.
History
Joseph EllicottJoseph Ellicott
Joseph Ellicott was an American surveyor, city planner, land office agent, lawyer and politician of the Quaker faith.-Life:He was the son of Joseph Ellicott ....
supervised the building of the first courthouse in 1802 on behalf of the Holland Land Company
Holland Land Company
The Holland Land Company was a purchaser of the western two-thirds of the western New York land tract known as the Phelps and Gorham Purchase. This tract was known thereafter as The Holland Purchase...
, for which he was agent. It was a two-story frame structure located to the east of the present building, near the site of the county building on the opposite side of the triangle. He had chosen what became Batavia for his headquarters due to its location at the convergence of major Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
trails through the region, two of which became Main and Ellicott streets and the state highways that follow them.
The original building had jail facilities in the basement, offices on the first floor and its courtroom upstairs. Like its successor, it was topped with a cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
. Local lore holds that David McCracken, a prosperous early resident with a reputation for playing practical joke
Practical joke
A practical joke is a mischievous trick played on someone, typically causing the victim to experience embarrassment, indignity, or discomfort. Practical jokes differ from confidence tricks in that the victim finds out, or is let in on the joke, rather than being fooled into handing over money or...
s, was surprised that the land company had not bought a bell to go with it, and commissioned a bell on his own from a foundry in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
. After taking delivery, he hung it from a pole between two trees and proceeded to ring it in the early hours of one morning, awakening the entire village. Ellicott asked if the bell was for sale, and when McCracken said yes, the land agent bought it from him at that very moment. It has hung in the courthouse ever since.
As the Holland Purchase was settled more extensively, Genesee County, which had originally been coterminous with the lands, was subdivided into the other ten counties in the region. As the county's boundaries changed, this created pressure to relocate the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
somewhere more central to the remaining county. This ended with the creation of the last county, Wyoming
Wyoming County, New York
Wyoming County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. At the 2010 census, the population was 42,155. The county seat is Warsaw. The name is from a modified Delaware Indian word meaning "broad bottom lands"...
, to Genesee's immediate south, in 1841, leaving Batavia once again centrally located within the county.
The county's Board of Supervisors had petitioned the state legislature for money to build a new courthouse, which was authorized that same year. Its Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
design, typical for public buildings of the period, was an expanded version of the original courthouse, later to serve as town and village hall. The Onondaga limestone was quarried locally. The wall stones came from nearby Le Roy
Le Roy (town), New York
Le Roy, or more commonly LeRoy, is a town in Genesee County, New York, United States. The population was 7,790 at the 2000 census. The town is named after one of the original land owners, Herman Le Roy....
, already emerging as a center for that material, and the pillars and capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
from Lockport
Lockport (town), New York
Lockport is a town in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 20,529 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from the series of canal locks on the Erie Canal...
, the seat of Niagara County
Niagara County, New York
Niagara County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 216,469. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word Onguiaahra; meaning the strait or thunder of waters. It is the location of Niagara Falls and Fort Niagara, and...
to the northwest.
Local craftsmen worked on the construction. The building was finished early in 1843 and the first court sessions were held later that year. At first the Board of Supervisors allowed all sorts of public meetings to be held in the building, but by 1851 they had ordered the sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
to allow only county meetings. The two building commissioners who had overseen construction later served as judges, one not leaving the bench until the early 20th century.
The first renovations were made in 1862, when some aspects of the interior were altered and fireproofing
Fireproofing
Fireproofing, a passive fire protection measure, refers to the act of making materials or structures more resistant to fire, or to those materials themselves, or the act of applying such materials. Applying a certification listed fireproofing system to certain structures allows these to have a...
was added to benefit the county clerk. In 1918 the original courthouse, since renamed Ellicott Hall, burned down. The bell was saved and moved to the cupola in the current courthouse.
Major renovations took place in 1932. The front, originally a recessed full-width porch with freestanding columns, was enclosed to create more office space. The columns became pilasters. Inside, the upstairs courtroom was reconfigured into a north-south access and the bench was moved accordingly. These renovations cost $58,000 ($ in contemporary dollars).
In 1957 the exterior walls were sandblasted. A more extensive 1975 project spent $155,000 ($ in contemporary dollars) to add a fire alarm and sprinkler system, lightning protection, gutter downspout
Downspout
A downspout, downpipe, roof drain pipe, or leader is a vertical pipe for carrying rainwater from a rain gutter to ground level...
s and cleaned the outside stone again. The windows and roofing were replaced, along with the wooden trim. The wooden supports for the bell were replaced, and its rope gave way to an electrical system. Air conditioning and an elevator were added in 1999.
There have been no other substantial changes to the building. Currently it serves as offices for the county manager
Council-manager government
The council–manager government form is one of two predominant forms of municipal government in the United States; the other common form of local government is the mayor-council government form, which characteristically occurs in large cities...
and his or her assistant, as well as the county attorney
County attorney
A county attorney in many areas of the United States is the chief legal officer for a county or local judicial district. It is usually an elected position...
. The nine-member county legislature still meets twice a month in the upstairs courtroom.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Genesee County, New York
- Fellows v. BlacksmithFellows v. BlacksmithFellows v. Blacksmith, 60 U.S. 366 , was the first litigation of aboriginal title in the United States in the U.S. Supreme Court by an indigenous plaintiff since Cherokee Nation v. Georgia...